The Thunderbox Mobile
Compost Toilet has gone ICONIC! Not only famous
as an environmental alternative to the chemical
toilet on the festival circuit, we are now copied
by other manufacturers! We take it as a compliment
but are they as good?! We are best sellers at
a camp ground near you as well as The National
Trust, Forestry Commission, Natural England and
many forest schools, private estates, Allotment
Associations and of course glampers galore!

The key difference
with our system is that we use a large but very
tactile container that provides massive maintenance
free capacity but, (along with our proven design)
also creates an incredibly efficient composting
container. This means no heavy handling involved
with bins and buckets or environmental health
issues relating to moving un-composted materials.
Our system has been approved by the Environment
Agency and we even have our own code of practice
with them. This is because we're professional
composters, not just a timber retail outlet.

Here at the Thunderbox
Collective we make a variety of compost toilets
to order, or you can hire them for festivals and
other short term events. From as little as £1600,
Thunderboxes are a virtually maintenance free
system that is ideal for a wide variety of situations.
They are pleasant to use, require no water or
electricity, or even vehicle access, and most
importantly make great compost! Not only have
we been making Thunderboxes since 2003, we use
one ourselves so we know how little maintenance
is needed. Our family of 6 has been using our
present tank for over year and it's only half
full, whereas a wheelie bin would last us 25 days!
Thunderboxes give total flexibility whilst maintaining
sanitation standards and user comfort.
There are clear social, environmental and cultural
benefits for using a viable alternative to chemical
toilets for off-grid provision. We, the Thunderbox
Collective are on that mission!

A Thunderbox at Westonbirt Arboretum

Thunderboxes are made using sustainably sourced
durable timber from our own woods. These are managed using
continuous cover techniques, and the timber extracted is assisting
the conversion of the plantations back to native broadleaved
woodland. So you can be sure you are buying British and supporting
a rural business.
A number of other components used in the construction of Thunderboxes
(including the bulk containers) are of recycled origin.

By definition,
a compost toilet should produce compost, not waste. Thunderboxes
have demonstrated easy production of friable compost.

How does it work?
To create safe and useful compost, the material needs to either
spend considerable time composting away from human contact,
thereby breaking the pathogens cycle, or by rapid “Hot composting.”
Oxygen loving bacteria are present almost anywhere there is
a organic matter to break down and an oxygen supply - they just
turn up!

They do have specific requirements though. The more material
the better. The reason we use our bulk tanks means less servicing
and better compost due to air circulation. Just like a fire
they need oxygen and fuel in the right condition. The “fuel”
in this case is our “deposits” plus “soak”, usually sawdust
or straw. This produces a mix of carbon to nitrogen around 30:1.
The oxygen loving or aerobic bacteria will attack this with
fervour given good oxygen supply. That's why we use fitted pipe
chimneys to create a "draw" just like a regular fireplace,
allowing composting to occur in situ.

The bulk container can be used as a tumbler if the
tank is replaced. On small scale ventures this may never occur
due to massive capacity, super efficiency of our venting system
and the associated composting.
A cubic metre of fresh compost will reduce by one third in a
month and reduce to one tenth of its original bulk eventually.
Sometimes we get heat developing which is a sign of rapid composting
but generally we compost for months and generally don’t use
our compost inside two years. By then it is virtually soil and
full of nutrients and high humic content.

Purchase your Thunderbox either
as a DIY kit (recomended as you will then know how to put
it up and manage the compost side of things) or we could come
and install. We also make wheelchair accessible Thunderboxes
as well as a moveable 'shifty' version with a towbar.

We have a number of units available for event
Hire including our new "Multi-unit" for
bigger gigs. We operate in the South-West
(Devon, most of Somerset and parts of Cornwall), the
South-East (Kent, most of Sussex, and parts of Surrey)
and Oxford areas. Really sorry, we can't
hire elsewhere due to the generation of ‘poo-miles!’
but are building a franchise network, so do contact us via
the contact box below.

Run your own Thunderbox Business
and get paid to go to festivals/parties! We are looking for
like-minded people to take Thunderboxes to places we don't
reach, and are therefore offering Franchise
deals - talk to us!

There are
a number of regulations and laws concerning composting and dealing
with human waste. We take these issues very seriously…its
our business too! They become particularly important for larger
events and more Authorites get involved. We've been building
compost loos since 2003 and so we have considerable experience
in all scales of events and sites. We have also been working
with the Environment Agency over the last few years to develop
the new code on composting human waste, based on the Thunderbox
method - legal recognition at last!
We also hold generic risk assessments and safety records as
well as special excemption licences for some of our clients.
It is important to talk to us early in proceedings to allow
time for the paper trail to catch up with our bacteria!

We
like to think we can offer custom prices to meet your
needs:

A single Thunderbox
can work out as cheap as £1600 although if you want
wheels and whistles it'll cost a bit more! A double Thunderbox (2 cubicles back to back)
costs around £1800 depending on your particular
wishes. We can offer discounts for larger orders, festival
toilets and franchises - talk to us!

The all new wheelchair
accessible Thunderbox with ramp, handrails and
easy access sliding door! Comes as a double with larger
than normal cubicle on the other side. Price £3500
including local delivery and installation.

Those of you with larger
events will usually need site specific discussions
beforehand but will have the advantage of economy of scale.
Generally, the hire of a double unit works out around
£300 (or £150/loo) without servicing, but
includes delivery (within 30 miles), collection and subsequent
disposal. All our loos come with lighting, sawdust, loo
roll, magazines, a pot of flowers and LOVE! (by the way,
there’s no VAT on love or any of the rest either!)
We know we are a tad more expensive per unit than the
conventional portable loo on the shorter hires….sorry,
but there is simply more work in composting and no price
tag (as yet) on the hidden costs of chemical usage. We
do work out a lot cheaper, depending on length of hire,
for larger events where the costs of emptying chemical
loos really start to stack up. With 500 litres capacity
under your seat there’s no fear of getting full!
We do take “poo miles” seriously - so sorry,
but hire outside of Devon will incur additional transport
and carbon sinking costs.